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Scripture
2 Chronicles 27:1-2 (NIV) 1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother's name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done, but unlike him he did not enter the temple of the Lord. The people, however, continued their corrupt practices.

Observation
Jotham represented something fairly unusual in the history of either Judah or Israel. He was the third generation of kings of Judah who walked in the ways of the Lord instead of doing evil in the sight of the Lord. Good kings dotted the history of God's people, but they were typically followed by sons who did not follow in their footsteps. It speaks well of Amaziah his grandfather and Uzziah his father that Jotham would carry on a legacy of faithfulness to God.

Something else stands out about Jotham that is not so great. As far as we know he did everything he was supposed to do... he honored God, he walked in his ways, he did not defile the temple as his father had done. Jotham looks like a pretty good guy. There was only one problem. The people did not follow his example! Jotham was doing all the right things personally, but he was ineffective as a leader.

Leadership is influence. John Maxwell says "if you are leading and no one is following, then you are just taking a walk..." Jotham was not put in his position as a king just to live his own life righteously. He was also charged with the responsibility of leading the people to following God as well. For some reason he was not able to do that. We really don't know why from scripture. Whatever the reasons were, the end result was that Judah fell further and further into disobedience to God during his tenure.

As leaders the ultimate scorecard for our leadership is the influence we have on others. As leaders of Christ's church, are we influencing others to become more Christlike? Are we influencing non-Christians to be more open to Jesus and even to cross into a faith relationship with him? Are we growing other leaders who can expand the influence of our ministry?

Application
It's really easy for me to get so focused on my own personal walk that I lose sight of God's calling on my life to be a leader. Leadership is influence. Who am I influencing? Who is following me into a closer walk with Christ because of the influence of my leadership? How am I investing myself into the lives of others so that I have the opportunity to influence? This is something I must be much more intentional about if I am going to be the kind of leader God created me to be!

Prayer
Lord thank you for the gift of being called to lead. It is a great responsibility and one that I do not want to take lightly. Yes, help me to walk in your ways and live my life so that it pleases you, but also help me to lead in a way that influences others to live their lives that way also. Show me who you want me to be more intentional with in investing time and influence, pouring myself out as you pour into me.